This is the process to appeal against a civil decision by a district judge or magistrate in the State Courts.
If you wish to appeal a decision by another court officer, refer to:
If you are unsure who made the decision, contact the court to check.
You should be a party in a State Courts civil case, such as the:
You may file an appeal against a decision made by a district judge or magistrate if you are not satisfied with it.
You will need to apply for the court's permission to appeal if any of these conditions are met:
Otherwise, you do not need the court's permission to appeal.
Refer to the following on how to apply for permission to appeal.
When to file | Within 14 days after the date of the district judge’s or magistrate’s decision or judgment. The time for filing an application for permission to appeal does not start to run until after the District or Magistrate Court has heard and determined all matters in an application, including costs. The General Division of the High Court may extend the time for file the application at any time. The District or Magistrate Court may extend the time if the application for such extension was made before the time expires. |
How to file | Through eLitigation. |
The estimated fees include:
Item or service | Fee |
---|---|
File the application for permission to appeal |
|
File the affidavit |
|
Note: This table does not include additional fees payable to the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau.
You may choose to file personally or through a lawyer. If you are represented by a lawyer, the documents will be filed by your lawyer.
If you are representing yourself, follow these steps to apply for leave to appeal. The application for permission to appeal is to be filed in either the Magistrate’s Court or District Court that heard your case.
When: within 14 days from the decision
Visit the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau to file the following documents via eLitigation:
If the court accepts the filing of your application documents, the Service Bureau will inform you to return to collect the endorsed application issued by the court. This will contain the details of the hearing to decide whether to grant you permission to appeal.
You must serve the endorsed summons on the other party (the respondent). This means giving them a copy of the document in any of the following ways (according to Order 7, Rule 3 of the Rules of Court 2021):
You will receive a notice (via eLitigation, email or post) informing you that the record of proceedings is available for collection at the State Courts Service Hub. The record of proceedings include the court's grounds (reasons) for its decision.
Note: If no written grounds of decision are issued within 12 weeks after the date of filing of the notice of appeal, you must apply in writing to the Registrar to proceed with the appeal and for a copy of the record of proceedings.
You can collect the record of proceedings at the Service Hub (at Level 2 of the State Courts) after paying the prescribed fee.
Both you and the other party must attend the scheduled hearing.
If the court grants you permission, you may file and serve a Notice of Appeal within 14 days.
If the court refuses to grant you permission, you may apply to the General Division of the High Court for leave within 14 days after the date of the refusal. You need to file an Originating Application via eLitigation.
How you file an appeal depends on whether the decision was made in chambers (not open to the public) or in open court:
If the decision was made on an application | File an appeal under Order 18 (Division 3) of the Rules of Court 2021 |
If the decision was after trial | File an appeal under Order 19 (Division 2) of the Rules of Court 2021 |
If the decision was made by a State Courts district judge or magistrate on an application, file an appeal under Order 18 (Division 3) of the Rules of Court 2021.
Refer to the following on how to appeal under Order 18 (Division 3) of the Rules of Court 2021.
Who can file | A party in a State Courts civil case. |
What can be appealed | A decision made in chambers by a district judge or magistrate. |
When to file and serve |
The time for filing an appeal does not start to run until after the District or Magistrate Court has heard and determined all matters in an application, including costs. The General Division of the High Court may extend the time for filing and serving the notice of appeal at any time. The District or Magistrate Court may extend the time for filing and serving the notice of appeal if the appellant applies for such extension before the time expires. |
Who will hear the appeal | A judge in the General Division of the High Court. |
How to file | Through eLitigation. |
The party who files the appeal is the appellant. The other party is the respondent.
The estimated fees include:
Item or service | Fee |
---|---|
File the Notice of Appeal | $150 |
Security for costs |
|
Written submissions |
|
Note: This table does not include additional fees payable to the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau.
You may choose to file personally or through a lawyer. If you are represented by a lawyer, the documents will be filed by your lawyer.
If you are representing yourself, visit the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau to file the Notice of Appeal (Form 35 to Appendix A2 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021) via eLitigation. You will need to pay the filing fees.
If the court accepts your application documents, the Service Bureau will inform you to return to collect the Notice of Appeal issued by the court.
Parties to the appeal must file and serve on all parties who have an interest in the appeal written submissions (including any bundle of authorities) on why the District Judge’s or Magistrate’s decision is to be upheld, set aside or varied, in accordance with the timelines prescribed in O 18 r 21(5) . The written submissions must include submissions on the appropriate cost orders to be made in the appeal.
The written submissions are limited to 35 pages. The General Division of the High Court may allow this page limit to be exceeded in special circumstances. Written submissions exceeding the page limit may be subject to additional fees. You may apply for a waiver, refund, deferment or apportionment of such fees to the General Division of the High Court.
You must provide security for the respondent’s costs of the appeal and file a certificate for security for costs in Form 36 to Appendix A2 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021 at the time the notice of appeal is filed.
The security must be:
a. in the form of a solicitor’s undertaking in Form 37 to Appendix A2 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021 which must be filed and served on the respondent;
b. deposited in the Registry or with the Accountant-General; or
c. in any other form acceptable to the parties.
The security must be provided in the following amounts:
a. $3,000 for an appeal against a decision in a Magistrate’s Court action;
b. $5,000 for an appeal against a decision in a District Court action.
Any party may apply to the appellate Court to vary or waive the amount of security for costs to be provided.
Aside from an appeal, you may also make a request to the district judge or magistrate for further arguments after he or she has given his or her decision.
The request must be made by letter to the Registrar of the State Courts and served on all parties to the application.
The request must be filed before the earlier of the following:
a. the time at which the judgment or order relating to the decision is extracted
b. the 15th day after the date on which the decision is made.
The request must set out the proposed arguments briefly and include a copy of any authority cited.
The registrar will inform you within 14 days after receiving the request whether the district judge or magistrate requires further arguments. If the registrar does not inform you of this, it is deemed that the district judge or magistrate does not require further arguments.
If the decision was made by a State Courts district judge or magistrate after trial, file an appeal under Order 19 (Division 1) of the Rules of Court 2021.
Refer to the following on how to appeal under Order 19 (Division 1) of the Rules of Court 2021.
Who can file | A party in a State Courts civil case. |
What can be appealed | An appeal against any judgment of a Magistrate’s Court or District Court given — a. in a trial, including a case where judgment is given or the action is dismissed at trial because one or more parties are absent; b. after damages are assessed or accounts are taken by a district judge; or c. in an application for a committal order for contempt of court Note that “trial” is defined to mean the hearing on the merits of an originating claim or an originating application and includes all applications taken out or heard on the same day as such hearing and at any time after the commencement of such hearing until the giving of the judgment. |
When to file | Within 14 days after:
The time for filing an appeal and for filing an application for permission to appeal does not start to run until after the District or Magistrate Court has heard and determined all matters in the trial, including costs. A direction that costs are to be assessed is regarded as a determination on the issue of costs. The General Division of the High Court may extend the time for filing and serving the notice of appeal on the appellant’s application made at any time. The District or Magistrate Court may extend the time for filing and serving the notice of appeal if the appellant applies for such extension before the time expires. |
Who will hear the appeal | A judge in the General Division of the High Court. |
How to file | Through eLitigation. |
The party who files the appeal is the appellant. The other party is the respondent.
The estimated fees include:
Item or service | Fee |
---|---|
Security for costs
|
|
File the Notice of Appeal | $600 |
Written submissions | Appellant’s Case: $600 Appellant’s Reply: $300 Fees for pages in excess of page limit: a. First 10 pages or less exceeding the limit: $10 per page b. Every subsequent 10 pages or less: N + $10 per page (where “N” is the fee payable per page for the previous 10 pages), subject to a maximum of $100 per page. |
Core Bundles | Fees for pages in excess of page limit: a. First 10 pages or less exceeding the limit: $10 per page b. Every subsequent 10 pages or less: N + $10 per page (where “N” is the fee payable per page for the previous 10 pages), subject to a maximum of $100 per page. |
Note: This table does not include additional fees payable to the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau.
You may choose to file personally or through a lawyer. If you are represented by a lawyer, the documents will be filed by your lawyer.
If you are representing yourself, follow these steps to appeal.
Security for costs
You must provide security for the respondent’s costs of the appeal and file a certificate for security for costs in Form 36 to Appendix A2 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021 at the time the notice of appeal is filed.
The security must be:
a. in the form of a solicitor’s undertaking in Form 37 to Appendix A2 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021which must be filed and served on the respondent;
b. deposited in the Registry or with the Accountant-General; or
c. in any other form acceptable to the parties.
The security must be provided in the following amounts:
a. $3,000 for an appeal against a decision in a Magistrate’s Court action;
b. $5,000 for an appeal against a decision in a District Court action.
Any party may apply to the appellate Court to vary or waive the amount of security for costs to be provided.
If you decide to deposit the security for costs with the Accountant-General’s Department, you may wish to refer these steps (see paragraph 22 of the State Courts Practice Directions):
Note: You will receive a receipt for the deposit. You will need to submit a copy of this receipt when filing the appeal.
Visit the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau to file a Notice of Appeal (Form 35 to Appendix A2 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021).If the court accepts the filing of your application documents, the Service Bureau will inform you to return to collect the Notice of Appeal issued by the court.
You must serve the Notice of Appeal issued by the court on the other party (the respondent). This means giving them a copy of the document in any of the following ways (according to Order 7, Rule 3 of the Rules of Court 2021):
You will receive a notice (via eLitigation, email or post) informing you that the record of proceedings is available for collection at the State Courts Service Hub. The record of proceedings include the court's grounds (reasons) for its decision.
Note: If no written grounds of decision are issued within 12 weeks after the date of filing of the notice of appeal, you must apply in writing to the Registrar to proceed with the appeal and for a copy of the record of proceedings.
You can collect the record of proceedings at the Service Hub (at Level 2 of the State Courts) after paying the prescribed fee.
Within 28 days after date on which the Registry notifies parties that the record of proceedings is available, you must file and serve:
a. the record of appeal;
b. the Appellant’s Case;
c. the Appellant’s core bundle of documents, with the written judgment or grounds of decision of the lower Court and the extracted order of the lower Court in a separate volume; and
d. the Appellant’s bundle of authorities.
If you fail to do the above within the specified time, the appeal is deemed withdrawn unless the appellate Court otherwise orders.
The Appellant's Case must contain the following:
a. a succinct summary of the facts, the decision of the lower Court, contentions to be made at the appeal and the orders sought from the General Division of the High Court;
b. detailed submissions on the facts and the legal issues, including the relevant authorities, highlighting any new points not raised in the lower Court;
c. references in the right-hand margin to the relevant pages in the record of appeal and the Appellant’s core bundle of documents;
d. submissions on the appropriate costs orders to be made on appeal;
e. submissions on the amount of costs and disbursements that should be awarded in respect of all parties to the appeal;
f. the name and signature of the Appellant’s solicitor.
Within 14 days after the Respondent’s Case is served on you, you must file and serve:
a. the Appellant’s Reply (if any);
b. the second core bundle (if necessary); and
c. the Appellant’s second bundle of authorities (if any).
To proceed with the appeal, you should file the record of appeal, Appellant's Case and a bundle of authorities via eLitigation.
The Appellant’s Reply (if any) must contain the following:
a. the Appellant’s detailed submissions in reply to the respondent’s submissions;
b. references in the right-hand margin to the relevant pages in the record of appeal, the Appellant’s core bundle of documents, the respondent’s core bundle of documents (if any), and the second core bundle (if any);
c. the name and signature of the Appellant’s solicitor.
Note: The Appellant’s Case, the Respondent’s Case and the Appellant’s Reply (if any) are subject to the following page limits, unless the General Division of the High Court otherwise orders:
a. Appellant’s Case — 35 pages;
b. Respondent’s Case — 35 pages;
c. Appellant’s Reply — 20 pages.
The Appellant’s core bundle of documents (excluding the written judgment or grounds of decision of the lower Court and the extracted order of the lower Court), the Respondent’s core bundle of documents and the second core bundle are subject to the following page limits, unless the General Division of the High Court otherwise orders:
a. Appellant’s core bundle of documents (excluding the written judgment or grounds of decision of the lower Court and the extracted order of the lower Court) — 55 pages;
b. Respondent’s core bundle of documents — 35 pages;
c. Second core bundle — 25 pages.
The State Courts will send the documents related to your case to the General Division of the High Court, which will hear your appeal.
The General Division of the High Court will arrange for a hearing and inform you and the respondent of the date and time via a notice, which will be sent to you via eLitigation or post. Both you and the respondent must attend.
Tip: If you are unable to attend, you must request to change the hearing date, subject to the court's approval.
The General Division of the High Court will decide whether to allow or dismiss your appeal.
This is the general process during an appeal hearing:
This generally takes about 2 to 3 hours.
The court may issue a decision on the day of the hearing or choose to reserve judgment. If the court chooses to reserve judgment, you will receive further directions on what happens next.
There are 2 possible outcomes:
If your appeal is allowed | You get some or all of the changes you asked for, either in full or in part. The court may vary or overrule the original court's decision, or make a new order. |
If your appeal is dismissed | There are no changes to the original court's decision. |
The information here is for general guidance as the courts do not provide legal advice. If you need further help, you may want to get independent legal advice.
Find out moreAt any time before the appeal is heard or dealt with, you may file and serve on the parties to the appeal a notice of withdrawal in Form 34 to Appendix A2 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021 stating that you do not intend to proceed with the appeal.
Upon the filing of Form 34, and if there are no outstanding issues relating to costs or other matters, the appeal is deemed withdrawn, and if all the parties consent to the withdrawal of the appeal, you must file a document signifying such consent through eLitigation. This document must be signed by the parties or their lawyers. In such event, the security for costs would be returned to you.
If there are any such outstanding issues relating to costs or other matters and the parties do not consent to the intended withdrawal of the appeal, you may request in writing to the appellate Court for directions on those issues. No oral arguments are to be made unless the appellate Court otherwise directs. The Registrar may, upon receiving such a request, remove the appeal from the list of appeals and give directions on the making of written submissions for the request, for the court to issue orders or directions on any issue as to costs or otherwise that remains outstanding between parties to the appeal.
For more information, refer to Order 18 Rule 12 and Order 19 Rules 10 and 17 of the Rules of Court 2021.
If costs have been awarded in your favour, the deposit will be returned to you.
If costs have been awarded against you, the deposit will be utilised to satisfy costs that have been awarded against you and the balance (if any) will be returned to you.
If the decision was made on an application
You must file and serve on all parties who have an interest in the appeal written submissions (including any bundle of authorities) on why the District Judge’s or Magistrate’s decision is to be upheld, set aside or varied in accordance with the timelines prescribed in Order 18 Rule 21(5).
If the decision was made after trial
After that, you will receive the record of appeal, the Appellant's Case and the appellant’s core bundle of documents.
You will need to file and serve the Respondent's Case, the Respondent’s core bundle of documents (if necessary) and the Respondent’s bundle of authorities within 28 days after the Appellant serves the abovementioned documents on you (Refer to Order 19 Rule 17(8) of the Rules of Court 2021 for more information.)
If you fail to file and serve the Respondent’s case within the specified time, you will not be allowed to make submissions at the hearing of the appeal unless the appellate Court otherwise orders.
The Respondent's Case must contain:
a. succinct summary of the contentions to be made at the appeal and the orders sought from the General Division of the High Court;
b. detailed submissions on the facts and the legal issues, including the relevant authorities, highlighting any new points not raised in the lower Court;
c. references in the right-hand margin to the relevant pages in the record of appeal and the Respondent’s core bundle of documents (if any);
d. if the Respondent intends to submit that —
(i) the lower Court’s decision should be varied should the appeal be wholly or partially allowed where the Respondent has not appealed against the decision of the lower Court; or
(ii) the lower Court’s decision should be affirmed on grounds other than those relied upon by that Court, the Respondent must state so in the Respondent’s Case and set out the reasons for the Respondent’s submissions;
e. submissions on the appropriate costs orders to be made on appeal;
f. submissions on the amount of costs and disbursements that should be awarded in respect of all parties to the appeal;
g. the name and signature of the respondent’s solicitor.
The Respondent’s Case is limited to 35 pages. The Respondent’s core bundle of documents is limited to 35 pages. The General Division of the High Court may allow the page limit to be exceeded in special circumstances and unless the court otherwise orders, upon the payment of the fees and additional fees prescribed for the filing of pages in excess of the page limit.
If you are not represented by a lawyer, visit theLawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau to file the Respondent's Case. The estimated fee is $600. (This does not include additional fees payable to the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau.)
You will have to serve the documents on the other parties. This means giving them a copy of the document in any of the following ways (according to Order 7 Rule 3(c) of the Rules of Court 2021):
The General Division of the High Court will inform you of the appeal hearing date. You must attend the hearing.